And a petition has been launched urging Education Secretary Nicki Morgan to reinstate Nita.

The Change.org campaign was set up by Andrew Cox in London, who wrote: "We need to stop tormenting ourselves with the idiocy of 'political correctness' where we have to suspend our sense of humour for fear of causing offence.

"This is deeply patronising to many Muslims who resent the burqa and see it as an affront to their personal liberty and their freedom to practice their religion as they see fit.

The petition demands that the school reinstate Nita and "challenge the absurdity of this unfair, arbitrary and morally false decision that was made in bad faith."

But the school insists Nita had been warned about social media post previously - and was on her final warning.

“Despite this, she continued to make inappropriate posts and was therefore subject to a hearing at which she was dismissed," a school spokeswoman said.